ERIC Number: EJ1239674
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019-Dec
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2255-7547
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Teachers' Perceptions of Consumer Education in Primary Schools in Finland
Pajari, Kati; Harmoinen, Sari
Discourse and Communication for Sustainable Education, v10 n2 p72-88 Dec 2019
Operating in today's markets is challenging due to information overload and an expanding choice of products. Children also encounter these complex markets at an early age. Providing consumer education in schools is an excellent opportunity to enhance their ability to think critically and increase their awareness. However, it would be a mistake to ignore the interconnections between consumer education and entrepreneurship education, since active and innovative people are also a prerequisite for future development. Taking advantage of the opportunity to provide consumer education in schools requires teachers to be familiar with consumer issues. This article aims to discuss the perceptions and experiences that primary school teachers in Finland have regarding children's consumer education in schools. This study was conducted using the phenomenographic qualitative method to analyse data from teacher interviews. The analysis revealed a set of categories that describes the various ways the participants perceive and experience children's consumer education in schools. These categories include themes, actors, teaching methods and the challenges and expectations teachers relate to children's consumer education. The findings of this study are worth exploring when planning how to support teachers' consumer educational competences for a sustainable future. The authors consider that this article is especially valuable for curriculum planners, educators, consumer organisations and parents' associations, because it shed light on teachers' perspectives about consumer education.
Descriptors: Teacher Attitudes, Consumer Education, Elementary School Teachers, Children, Teaching Methods, Sustainable Development, Entrepreneurship, Money Management, Media Literacy, Technological Literacy, Foreign Countries, Skill Development, Family (Sociological Unit)
Sciendo, a company of De Gruyter Poland. 32 Zuga Street., 01-811 Warsaw, Poland. Tel:+48-22-701-5015; e-mail: info@sciendo.com; Web site: https://www.sciendo.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Finland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A